The National Park Service is exploring whether to make Grant’s Farm a national park.

The Busch family, which owns the petting zoo and nature preserve and leases the property to Anheuser-Busch, has expressed interest in making the iconic St. Louis attraction a national park.

“The desire is to have long-term preservation and public access to the farm,” said Frank Hamsher, a spokesman for the Busch family. “We are simply looking at what are the best options for long-term preservation of the property.”

The idea grew out of conversations between “two neighbors" — Grant’s Farm and the nearby Ulysses S. Grant historic site, he said.

Tim Good, superintendent of the Ulysses S. Grant historic site, said the Busch family is “interested in the preservation of American history.”

About 550,000 people visit the farm every year. It is owned by a trust controlled by six children of August A. "Gussie" Busch Jr., former chairman and CEO of Anheuser-Busch and great-grandson of brewery founder Adolphus Busch. The family could either sell or donate the land, Good said.

In December, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service within the U.S. Department of the Interior directed the National Park Service to conduct a “reconnaissance study” on the south St. Louis County farm. The study began in January and wrapped in March. The 50-page report supports the farm’s national significance and suitability for becoming a national park, but did raise issues about the cost of operating the farm, which loses about $3.5 million to $4 million a year.

Ultimately, the decision to designate the farm a national park is up to U.S. Congress and Missouri’s congressional delegation.

"All St. Louisans have learned sometimes things are beyond our control," U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan, D-Mo., said. "The National Park Service does an outstanding job preserving America's treasures across the country and I have little doubt they would do an excellent job of preserving the history and experience of Grant's Farm as they do already across the street at President Grant's home: White Haven.

“There remain a number of questions as to how the park service could continue this one-of-a-kind experience, but it's never too soon to explore all the options available so that Grant's Farm continues to be one of the areas best experiences for years to come.”

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., called Grant's Farm "a great asset to the community for generations." “As with everything right now, we need to keep our country’s current financial situation in mind, so I would be most interested in exploring options that would not add to our country's deficit," she said.

Sites that successfully become national parks, Good said, are usually endorsed by four of the five groups: Property owners, community leaders, residents, the local Congressional delegation and the press.

If Grant’s Farm became a national park, it would bear the closest resemblance to the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park in Vermont, which also features a menagerie of animals and has a history of ownership by several families, just as Grant’s Farm was first owned by former President and Civil War General Ulysses S. Grant and then the Busch family, Good said.

Good plans to make a presentation about the National Park Service report at Grantwood Village’s next trustee meeting a week from today, July 20.

“This is really up to the community whether they want this to happen; they are really in the drivers’ seat,” Good said.

“We are certainly in favor of it,” said Cathy Forand, chairman of Grantwood Village’s board of trustees. “I think it would be something fantastic because that would protect it. With the change in the brewery, you just don’t know what will happen.”

Speculation about the fate of Grant’s Farm surfaced as soon as Belgium-based InBev, known for its frugality, expressed interest in buying St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch in 2008. After the $52 billion deal created the world’s largest brewer, many observers wondered whether Grant’s Farm would be sold.

But that wasn’t exactly the case, Hamsher said. “Anheuser-Busch continues to operate the property and has indicated to us that it is interested in continuing to do so for the foreseeable future,” he said.

Anheuser-Busch is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the property but is not involved in the discussions about making the farm a national park, Grant's Farm General Manager Andy Elmore said. "The farm is operating business-as-usual during its 56th season," he said.

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